76 Addisonia 



tion was taken up, following several natural stages: first the pine- 

 lands, then the hammocks were investigated, and later the wet parts 

 of the country, the marshes and the swamps, received some atten- 

 tion. The plant under consideration, an inhabitant of swamps and 

 marshes, did not appear in botanical literature of the United States 

 until the last quarter of the nineteenth century. It was discovered 

 in Florida, almost simultaneously, at the western side of the 

 peninsula and on the eastern, along the shores of two rivers which 

 have become permanently and prominently associated with the 

 botanical history of North America, namely the Caloosahatchie 

 and the Miami. 



In Florida Jussiaea peruviana is now known to range from the 

 lake region to the southern end of the peninsula. It thrives only 

 in alluvial soil, consequently it does not occur on the Florida Keys 

 where alluvium is absent. Outside of Florida it has a very exten- 

 sive geographic range, extending through the West Indies and 

 continental tropical America to the southern part of South America. 

 Throughout this wide range the plants show but slight variation in 

 characters. This fact is noteworthy when we consider that south 

 of Florida this species has also considerable altitudinal range, 

 commonly occurring at five to six thousand feet elevation in moun- 

 tainous regions. 



This plant was discovered near Lima, Peru, about the beginning 

 of the eighteenth century. In that region it enjoyed considerable 

 repute among the Indians as a remedy for various diseases. Its 

 reputed medicinal quahties do not seem to have been discovered 

 by the Seminole Indians in Florida, although they have lived in 

 the midst of the plant for generations. 



This evening-primrose is one of our giant herbs. Although it 

 cannot compete with the "careless" {Acnida australis) in the 

 massiveness of its stem, it nearly or quite equals it in height. The 

 numerous large flowers with their bright yellow corollas which 

 expand during the evening, night and early morning are in strong 

 contrast to the deep-green foliage of the plant. 



The specimens from which the accompanying plate was made 



were collected in May, 1918, by the writer, in the Everglades near 



the source of the west branch of the Miami River; this stream 



once arose there as a rapids flowing over the rocky rim of the 



Everglades, at one time a picturesque landmark but totally 



destroyed during the past few years. 



John K. Small. 



Explanation of Plate. Fig. 1. — Flowering stem. Fig. 2. — Fruit, immature. 



